How to use iTunes in SA

Technology lover LAURENCE SEBERINI, managing director of LuckyMobile, begins a regular series on tips and tricks for iPad users with one of the most requested pieces of advice we’ve yet had on gadget: How does a South African user open a USA iTunes account?

First, let’s clear up one small confusion: there is an iTunes store available to South Africans wanting to download content from the Apple store, at http://www.apple.com/za/itunes/.

But, as most of those who have tried it will tell you, you cannot download music or games.

This is due to lack of geographic rights clearance which Apple doesn’t seem to want to change in a hurry.

The solution is set up a USA account, and buy iTunes vouchers on the Internet. This assumes you already have iTunes on your computer. If you don’t, you can download it free from the above address. Now you have to pretend a little.

Although Apple Terms & Conditions do not allow for the following procedure, it is common knowledge in the online world that Apple turns a blind eye, since no piracy or theft is involved, and customers are in fact paying for the content downloaded.

It’s very simple:

a. Click ‚continue‚ on the welcome screen

b. Click on the line that reads, ‚If the billing address of your payment information is not in South Africa, click here‚

c. Choose ‚US‚ and then click on ‚change country or region‚

d. Then accept terms of service and click ‚continue‚

e. On ‚create Apple ID‚ page note the following use a different email address to your SA account

f. On ‚provide a payment method page‚ note the following:

Enter your voucher under ‚Itunes gift cards and certificates‚

You won’t fill in the credit card information as you don’t have a USA credit card

Under ‚billing address‚ fill in a valid address from America ‚ this requires zip code and phone number ‚

There are also web sites sites that generate valid addresses, as MediaWob indicates in their guide at

http://www.mediawob.com/iTunes/Redeem.aspx?ref=1KB355190G339094R, but these are not real

addresses and may, once again, violate terms and conditions.

7. When your account has been created you will then have to redeem the voucher to get the value of it in your new USA

account ‚ simply go to the ITunes App Store page and at the bottom under ‚Manage‚ click on ‚Redeem‚

Once you have done this you can simply buy and redeem vouchers going forward. So it is worth the effort to set it up correctly first.